District 32-5A
Brownsville Hanna 53, Brownsville Lopez 51
Los Fresnos 61, Brownsville Pace 53
Brownsville Porter 58, San Benito 57
Brownsvilel Rivera 42, Weslaco High 30
District 32-4A
Weslaco East 68, Brownsville Veterans 61
Roma 49, Edcouch-Elsa 42
Hidalgo 64, Valley View 35
La Joya Juarez-Lincoln 54, Mercedes 50
Mission Veterans 61, Rio Grande City 47
District 32-3A
Zapata at La Feria, 7:30 p.m.
Port Isabel 79, PSJA Southwest 37
Rio Hondo at Grulla, not reported
District 31-3A
C.C. West Oso at Raymondville, not reported
District 32-1A Division I
La Villa at Santa Maria, not reported
District 32-1A Division II
Lasara 57, Tilden 46
San Isidro 63, Bruni 19

Special to 956sports.com

McALLEN – Sharyland’s Joaquin Pistokache called Friday night’s District 30-5A contest against McAllen Memorial one of his more frustrating games.

Well, he certainly knew what to do with that frustration.

After being held to one point through three miserable quarters, Pistokache scored the team’s final 12 points to help the Rattlers fight off the Mustangs in a key 54-52 victory.

“I stayed confident, stayed positive,” Pistokache said. “We came out with the victory. I kept fighting no matter what and stayed focused.”

With his team trailing by three with less than six minutes remaining, Pistokache single handedly took over, going on a late dominant run that a hungry Memorial squad could not match. Pistokache outscored the Mustangs 12-7 over the final 5:44, including his straightaway 3-pointer with 1:44 remaining that gave Sharyland the lead for good at 53-50 and quieted the raucous Memorial student section.

The Mustangs had one last chance to nab the victory or force overtime after trimming their deficit to 54-52, but Juan Gonzalez overshot his 3-point attempt as time expired.

“It was a tough one,” Pistokache said. “I give lots of props to Memorial. They came out ready to play. They really did challenge us, but we stuck through it. We played as a team and we got the victory. I’m really proud of my teammates.”

Deserving recognition for teammates, who kept the Rattlers within striking distance before stepping aside and watching the one-man show. Jesse Pistokache, Joaquin’s brother, scored 17 points and dominated the second half alongside his sibling. The two accounted for 21 of the team’s 25 points in the second half, which practically turned into a free-throw shooting contest after both teams made 15 trips to the line combined.

“I know they’re glad to get this one,” Sharyland coach David Keith said. “They seemed pretty happy. They really believe in each other and I’m so glad they were able to get it tonight.”

The victory is the 10^th consecutive win for the Rattlers (22-10 overall, 10-1 district), who stayed one game ahead of McAllen Rowe for the top spot in District 30-5A with three games to go.

“We don’t talk about the (district) championship,” Keith said. “I’m sure it’s on their minds, but we don’t talk about it. All we do is talk about the next game.”

Which Keith noted was Sharyland’s last heated district-rivalry game against the Mustangs after the new UIL realignment separated both teams in different leagues for the next two years. The Rattlers could feel pretty good about themselves for not only notching a statement win in their final district meeting against Memorial, but also sweeping the season series from their rivals.

After a 29-29 tie at halftime, the Mustangs (18-11, 7-4) claimed their largest lead at 40-34 with 2:54 remaining in the third quarter and led by five (45-40) with 6:29 in the fourth before Joaquin’s dramatic finish.

The Mustangs had three players score in double figures, led by Jordan Rosales’ 16 points.